At The End of The Day
by Paprika012345
Summary: Shikon complete, Kagome is given a limited amount of time before she has to go to her own time. What choice will Inuyasha make? Inu Kag


A/N-This probably isn't my best work...but if i write something i'll put it out, even if i think it's not that good. R&R

At the end of the day

Disclaimer-I don't own Inuyasha…the entire concept belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.

"I think I speak for everyone present when I say DIE NARAKU!" yelled Inuyasha. He swung the Tetsuaiga and slammed it into the ground yelling 'WIND SCAR!" Kagome knocked an arrow and poured her energy into it and aimed at the shine which indicated where the Jewel was. "Get LOST!" she yelled. "Hiraigotsu!" yelled Sango as she threw her weapon, one eye on Kohaku's lifeless body "FOR KOHAKU!" She screamed. "WIND TUNNEL!" was all that Miroku said as he aimed his right hand at the miasma shrouded being.

All of it was too much for the evil demon. All the weapons at the same time overwhelmed him and he died. The last one to hit him was the arrow which purified every single demon residing within the body of Onigumo. When the smoke from the wind scar cleared all that was still visible was the tattered, burned body of the bandit Kikyo had nursed 52 years ago.

"It's over." Kagome walked over towards the body, where the jewel lay. Picking it up she turned the small pink marble over in her hand. All that for this? It was hardly worth it. Kohaku was dead, Miroku had sucked in enough miasma to nearly kill him and  
Kikyo had been forced to move on. And now that the jewel was whole the only one she loved would wish himself away from her. She closed her eyes and turned around, facing Inuyasha. She dropped the little ball into his hands, praying all the while that he would do the right thing with it and now wish himself into a demon. "Here it is. We've been through a lot to get it." Inuyasha looked at her before looking away and closing his fist over the Shikon and turning his back on her.

This gesture alone was enough to cause tears to form in her eyes. She turned her back on his own and leapt onto Kilala for the trip back to Kaede's village.

Once they got back, they told Kaede the whole story. About how Naraku-the true Naraku- had attacked them when they were camping the previous night. He had already retrieved Kouga's shards-apparently by threatening Ayame, showing who he truly cared about. He had also made Kohaku accompany him only to rip the shard out of his back right in front of Sango. About how they had fought a hard fight, finally destroying the evil hanyou once and for all.

"All is well then is it not? And Kagome, child, have ye the Shikon?" queried the old woman. "We have it. I purified it, and then gave it to Inuyasha…he was the one who wanted it in the first place." Responded the schoolgirl softly. Kaede nodded and turned her gaze on Inuyasha saying "and now that ye have what ye have searched so long for what will ye do with it?" The Inu-hanyou was playing with the small marble between his fingers. "I'm not quite sure. A small part of me still wants to become a full demon but…I've been down that road and I…almost killed both Miroku and Kagome. I'm talking about when Kaguya forcibly took my human heart." No one noticed how Kagome's face tinged pink at mention of this incident.

He continued "And I could wish Kikyo back…" there was a sharp intake of breath as he proposed this and he could sense that Kagome was all set to say the word that would cause him to do a painful face plant. "…but I don't know what that would do to Kagome. I mean, her soul is as whole as it was before the witch Urasue revived her. The only thing I can think of to do with it right now, is give it back to Kagome to protect until I can decide what to do with it." That being said the Shikon no Tama was dropped back into the hands of the young miko. The hanyou left the hut after the exchange took place.

"Now what Kagome? Ye cannot take the Shikon no Tama back to your time…any demons still residing there would wreak havoc to find it. The Shikon must stay in the Feudal era."

"Yes Kaede I know this and I'll remember these adventures my whole life but that is my home. I need to go back there, and I know that once I pass through the well it won't let me back. My mission is done here." Sango cried out at this. Kagome wrapped her arms around her best friend saying "Sango, you knew this had to come to this eventually. I don't belong here. And besides…" her voice dropped to a whisper as she said "you have Miroku. Just tell him how you feel."

Up on the roof of the little hut a certain dog-eared boy was listening to this, his heart slowly breaking. She was going to go back to the future. He would, in all likeliness survive that long but he still had his human blood. He would be in no condition to mate with her then, he'd be an old man. He was going to ask her to stay with him but she wouldn't; he knew how stubborn that girl was. She was going to her own time and there was no way she was coming back. Was there no way they could possibly be together?

He fell asleep with this horrible thought on his mind. Until he shot awake, hours later with a solution. It would work. It would also require some tremendous sacrifice on his part but he was willing to make that sacrifice if it meant being with Kagome in the long run. He fell back to sleep, content that, with his idea, the time gap would work.

The next morning was surrounded in a grim pallor as Kagome continually put off packing her backpack to leave the Feudal era forever. Finally, just before noon, she managed to gather up the strength to pack all of her belongings into the bag and shoulder the bag. Shippo threw himself at her, tears pouring down his small face. "Don't go Kagome okaa-san." He sniffled into her shirt. It stunned her to hear him call her that. She wrapped her own arms around him and said "Be strong Shippo, my son. You're a demon, you should see me in 500 years." And the young kitsune had to he satisfied with that as Sango detached him from Kagome's torso. She hugged Sango and Kaede goodbye and shook Miroku's curse free hand. Inuyasha detached himself from the group and said "I'll walk you to the well."

They walked through the forest in silence until the well and the sacred tree came into view. As they stood in front of the sacred tree, just looking up at it, until Inuyasha turned to Kagome and broke the silence. "I don't suppose there's any use in me asking you to stay?" she smiled sad at him. Inuyasha turned away and said "I thought so. That being the case…" Kagome walked over to him, curiously watching as he pulled out a bow and two arrows out from under his haori. "Seal me to the sacred tree, just as Kikyo did, except high up on the trunk where I will be invisible until you release me in 500 years. And seal the kit up too, that way it's less of a wait for him." He roughly tossed the instruments towards her. "But Inuyasha…won't it hurt you?"

He sighed and turned towards her. "I talked to Kaede about it this morning. The only reason it hurt the first time was because Kikyo was filled with such malice towards me as she fired the arrow. If you have no hard feelings towards me when you fire the arrow, it should just slip into my skin without causing pain. Same with Shippo." Inuyasha let out a loud whistle, supposedly to call the Kitsune along with Sango and Miroku. "Will you Kagome? If you don't I will survive to your time but I will be an old man and unfit for you to marry or mate."

Kagome was shocked. He wanted to marry her? Her face broke into a grin as she wrapped two arms around his neck, and kissed him on the cheek. "As long as you're sure it won't hurt you and Shippo of course I will, if it means to see you again!" Just as they were doing this the trio walked into the clearing. "Are we…interrupting something?" said Miroku slyly. Inuyasha turned red, as did Kagome, while Sango bopped him on the head with the boomerang. "Hentai." She muttered. "Kagome." She said turning her attention to the young miko "I thought you would've left."

"Actually there's been a new development. Inuyasha wanted me to seal him to the sacred tree so I can wake him up as soon as I get to the future. Then we can be together in my time. And Shippo…if you want, you can curl up in his haori where I'm going to shoot and then you can be woken up in 500 years. Or you can live for 500 years and come and find me on June the 17th 2006, because that's the day that I will be coming through the well on my era." Shippo looked helplessly at his adoptive mother before saying "I want to live my life mama. I'd love for 500 years to pass in the blink of an eye but I want to be able to find a mate. I'm sorry." His voice dropped to a whisper on the last sentence.

She gathered him into her arms saying "Whatever you choose I will back you one hundred and ten percent." He hugged her back and leapt onto Sango's shoulder. Inuyasha picked the young priestess up bridal style and took her to one of the top branches of the sacred tree. There he lined himself up to the trunk while she stood a few feet away on the branch and took careful aim. "WAIT!" he yelled just as she was going to fire. She faltered and glared at him saying "What?" "I forgot something!" he declared as he walked forward and took her into his arms…and soundly kissed her on the mouth. She was surprised to say the least however she wrapped her arms-bow and all-around his neck and reciprocated. When he finally let go he then yelled down to Sango and Miroku saying "If you guys want, any time you want to leave a message for Kagome in my haori, just ride Kilala up and stick it in." they heard Sango yell her assent up and Inuyasha lined himself up with the trunk again. "Do it Kagome."

She knocked the arrow and pulled it back to full strength. She didn't put purity energy into the arrow, only sealing energy. And no malice. She saw no pain, only peace on his face as she released the arrow, a tear rolling down her cheek at having to do this to him. "Don't cry koi. You know how I hate that." He then fell into the sleep of the enchanted.

Kagome called down to Kilala, asking her to take her down. The Fire neko complied and soon Kagome had hugged her friends goodbye, kissed her son, and leapt down the well, never to return to the feudal era.

She climbed out of the well one last time and looked around the small well house. She then proceeded up the stairs and out of the building. It was sunset and her brother was playing with a young child who had reddish black hair and hazel eyes on the shrine steps. "Sis you're back! Oh before I forget there's a visitor for you inside. Something about how you said to meet him here today?" "SHIPPO!" she cried out, racing across the shrine to the house. The Kitsune's sensitive nose had, of course picked up her scent just after she crossed into the present. He was already at the door when she caught sight of him.

He had grown up handsome. His red hair had darkened into a reddish brown and his turquoise eyes had darkened into a sea blue. He was about 6 feet tall, nothing like the little Kit she remembered. But he wrapped his arms around her like he was young again and said "Okaa-san I've missed you." He took her bridal style into his arms and leapt up into the upper regions of the sacred tree.

Nothing was left to indicate that the hanyou had ever been sealed there. Shippo said later that he wasn't able to even pick up the slightest trace of Inuyasha's scent. But Kagome's keen eyes picked out what looked like a twig sticking out from the tree that shouldn't have been there. She grasped it and pulled. The trunk of the tree pulsed twice; and a thin line of pink light appeared in the trunk that ran as high as Inuyasha had been.

"What the…" came the gruff voice from inside the trunk. "Iron reaver soul stealer!" the bark exploded outwards at these words. And there he was; the setting sun showing him off in all his glory. Little bits of yellowed parchment stuck out from practically every imaginable hole in his haori indicating letters from Miroku and Sango. He took her into his arms despite this though. "Koi, it's a relief to be woken up by you finally."

As the day ended Kagome realized that, even though she had been forced to give up Miroku and Sango to the past, she had kept her love and her surrogate son. And at the end of the day, that's not much to sneeze at.


End file.
